China cabinet wants large pig farms to make up 58% of total by 2022

FILE PHOTO: Pigs are seen on the farm of pig farmer Han Yi at a village in Changtu county, Liaoning province, China January 17, 2019. REUTERS/Ryan Woo/File Photo

BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s state council said on Tuesday it wants large-scale pig farms to make up 58% of the total by 2022 to help improve stability of pork supplies.

It did not say how it defines large farms or what the current level is.

However analysts at Dutch bank Rabobank have said that farms producing more than 10,000 pigs a year only accounted for 18% of the total in 2016.

The push to promote large farms comes amid a severe shortage of pork in the world’s top consumer. China’s huge hog herd has shrunk by a third, according to official data, after African swine fever swept through the country in the past year.

The disease is deadly to pigs but does not harm people.

Beijing said on Monday it will offer subsidies of up to 5 million yuan ($700,000) to support the construction of large-scale pig farms.

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In a document published online, the cabinet laid out other measures to stabilize pork supply in the country, including urging provincial authorities to offer temporary subsidies to large farms in the major pig production counties.

It also called on big consuming regions to support pig production in other areas with significant production.

The document said large farms should account for 65% of the total by 2025.